The importance of listening to children has been steadily gaining recognition since Alison Clark and Peter Moss published Listening to Young Children: the Mosaic Approach in 2001. This emphasised the importance of finding methods with the starting point of children as experts in their own lives.
The EYFS now supports this fully with practitioners required to be skilled in listening to children as part of everyday practice and observation and assessment.
On 5 November the National Children's Bureau is presenting a conference, 'Early years - are we listening?', addressing these wider issues. The day will explore the ways in which children's rights, specifically the right to be listened to, can be kept central to all decisions that affect them, and ask whether more legislation is needed. Training consultant Judy Miller will offer support on embedding listening into practice and there will be presentations from early years teachers and children's centre heads. (Visit www.ycvn.eventbrite.com).
Meanwhile the Daycare Trust's one-day training session, 'Listening to the voices of young children', continues to receive positive feedback. This looks at practice in engaging with young children, including consultation methods, tools and techniques, consulting with disabled children and those with special educational needs, and embedding children's participation within local services.
Information manager Ros Hampson says, 'The course is generally purchased by local authorities and delivered to a mix of front-line practitioners and those working at a strategic level in the authority. It is this mix that allows the course to be really useful.
'The day encourages participants to reflect on their own practice and come up with ways things can be improved, based on the techniques and strategies presented. The aim is for people to take away an action plan they can implement.'
Coram Family has produced a useful resource to support practitioners' understanding, called 'Listening to Young Children'. It contains an introductory guide, a handbook and 11 individual case study booklets with a CD-Rom. (price £125 from Open University Press/McGraw Hill Education, www.mcgraw-hill.co.uk/html/0335213723.html).
Further information
www.daycaretrust.org
Early Years - are we listening?
www.ycvn.eventbrite.com
